All the Beirut news.

The Winning Team – Image Source

Back when I posted about Varouj restaurant, several people recommended that I go try Onno, another Armenian restaurant in Bourj Hammoud, and I totally regret not doing so until lately as I found it really fantastic!

Click to zoomWhat would a metro station in Beirut look like? Click on the image to find out.

Retired police chief Ashraf Rifi entered the spotlight today when he threw his support behind the fighters of Bab El Tabbaneh in the ongoing clashes in Tripoli. 
But posters praising Rifi have been up for weeks in Lebanon's second largest city. His likeness graces Tripoli's major intersections and roundabouts:

Cabriolet Film Festival 2013 will be held on 24th, 25th, and 26th of May at 8 pm on Saint Nicolas Stairs in Gemmayzeh.
A total of 47 short films from 21 different countries will be presented to the public during this three day event, with free entrance for everyone. The festival program is available here if you’re interested.

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It looks like Lara Kay and Myriam Klink might have some serious competition on their hands. In case you missed out on what happened with Rola Yamout, aka Haifa’s sister, in Hamra street, check it out [Here].
Thanks Nadz!

Please welcome our new outing on 7UPstairs Publishing. Elia Abou Madi's poem which has been typographically illustrated by yours truly based on old movie posters, book jackets and vintage advertising. The cover's artwork is by Desclozeaux (used under the fair use of the image doctrine for non-commercial purposes) and illustrates perfectly the melancholic words of the poem.

As one of the thousands of students who had to memorize the poem when I was 9 (owing to the book used back then for Arabic in schools) it brings back vivid memories of a delivery way beyond my years which left the teacher (Madame Layla) moved to tears. Enjoy the book, as usual, this is a labor of love! Feel free to spread.

Part of traveling is actually discovering your own country. Lately going out to the same places has become a bore. The sun is out and I thought why not try to dsicover a new place in Lebanon. I called TourLeb to help me uncover the 1001 mysteries of Lebanon. Countless foreigners discover our country, why »more...

Some science this morning… The New York Times posted an article “Building a $325,000 Burger” – intriguing no? The Telegraph also wrote about the new test tube burgers expected to change the way we eat this morning… It seems that pretty soon, people will get to try a burger that’s completely made at a lab. »more...

Source: Tripoli Facebook Page

via Trella
Haha!

In the framework of cultural forum Home Works 6, taking place in Beirut, Lebanon, from May 14-26, 2013 The Ruptures radio program will host a series of interventions by Lebanese art research project 98weeks, every Monday between May 27 and June 17 Project description: OUR LINES ARE NOW OPEN: A RADIO SERIES On the Poetics […]

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Ktir Gharibi Indeed!

Law 174 – No Smoking Lebanon Facebook Group proudly posted today that the latest research conducted by Dr. Jad Chaaban (AUB) has revealed that the “the indoor smoking ban that went into effect in September 2012 has *caused* a revenue increase of +3% for the sector”.
The full research was not published yet but I do hope that they are only considering restaurants that applied the non-smoking law because no one seemed to care about this law in most of the places I visited lately, whether nights, pubs, restaurants etc…

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This video is a month old yet pretty much shows how fragile the security situation is in Tripoli. It’s more than shameful to treat a human being this way, regardless of what he might have done.